I'm trying to really push hard and be fit this year. It's a goal, not a resolution. It's going to be a great year. I can feel it! I've been focusing on eating clean. Did have a glass of wine at a business event tonight. Hmmm... One glass. Not bad? I've seen studies that say that's the case... just as long as you don't drink a case But I don't want to set myself back so that was it. Trying to cut back on caffeine too.

So here's where I get a little spiritual. A lot of religions use fasting and cleansing. Think lent if you're Christian. Well, I've noticed that by eating clean I've become more in tune with my environment. Meaning something will happen or something will exist that can be taken as an omen or a sign or whatever. I've also heard it referred to as Synchronicity. As Obi Wan Kanobi said in Star Wars, "Trust your feelings Luke". I'm not advocating anything or tell you what you should/not do or that it can happen to you. This is just a blog of my experiences.

On a scientific level one could say it's because I don't have as many pollutants interfering with my neurons. I'm not a doctor or medical professional so I can't tell you the answer. But damn, I like the calmness and clarity I've been experiencing as well as feeling closer to nature even though I live in New York.

Where do I go from here. First I do have something to prove on a physical level. Be as fit as possible to prove to people around me that a vegan diet is the way to go. In stead of doing it for God & Country I'm doing it for Family & Friends. Then there's the spiritual side of all this. Honestly not sure what's up with that other than I hope it continues.

Last week I worked out five days. This week? Well had the networking event tonight and a date tomorrow. She's not vegan as I know some people are wondering. Rest of the week looks good for workout though. This is getting a little too long so I'll end it here. Have a Great Year!

The truth hurts. I could feel the effects of my sporadic workouts from the middle of November through two weeks ago. One or two workouts a week just doesn't cut it. Or build it. So I get on the scale and weigh in at 154.2 with 16% body fat. Last year at this time I was 155 lbs at 15%. The lowest I've been in recent memory is 13% and I've been hovering around 14% -15% for a few years. 16?! Weight and percent should be going in opposite directions. I'm 5' 11" in case you're wondering.

Really I'd like to be at 160 and 12%. jbrickzin recommended an online nutrition tracker: http://www.livestrong.com/man/ and I think that's a great idea so I'm going to setup an account for myself.

That being said, I did have a nice cardio session today. It goes like this:

Using a 1 pood / 16kg / 35 lb kettlebell do 3 circuits of 20 reps each hand of the following and rest 20 seconds (I start to need 30) between sets:

Saw the doctor today. He took X-Rays and confirmed what I suspected - arthritis in my hip. Damn! That means it's going to stay with me until The Big Guy takes me upstairs. The good news is the best way to deal with it is to exercise! Yes! I still get to have fun doing what I like. I can't imagine not being able to be physically active. Going in I thought I might also have a spine issue and fortunately all the vertebrae are a-ok. Everything else was fine.

So how do I handle it from here? First, stay vegan. Not that I ever had any intent of going back to meat-eating. But a vegan diet keeps your acid / alkaline balance in check. Meat, processed food and the standard American diet in general cause the body to be more acidic. That's how we leave ourselves open to diseases and ailments. Viruses and cancer tend to prefer acidic environments. An alkaline body resists all those. Key word resists. I'm not qualified to say prevents. You can look that up yourself. I think Bredan Brazier may have covered it in his Thrive series. I'm not sure if it's in The China Study or not.

One more thing. The doctor is doing the usual EKG heart monitor, blood pressure, breathing thing and says, "Seems like a 25 year old in there." I'm 46. Oh Yeah!

Good workout today. I'm doing double full body circuits with an extra ab routine at the beginning. Rest is kept to 30 seconds between sets to keep the cardio component going. I like combining strength and cardio.

I have an MRI scheduled for Sunday. Before the Patriots game of course. The center scheduled it not me. I'm just glad I don't have to miss work or the game! It should be clean. When the doctor looked at the X-Rays he didn't find anything other than the arthritis in the hip. It's a good idea to check everything out anyway. Better I know what's going on now than later when things could be worse.

All of this has motivated me even more. I kept pushing to get every last inch and centimeter out of my reps tonight. I'm determined to keep my strength and show my doctor... and my insurance company I can still kick ass a year from now. I don't know why but I have something to prove.

Yes! I hit a full week of workouts. Except for Tuesday when I had a business networking meeting after work. But I nailed it every day and will do a short ab / pull up bar routine tomorrow. My MRI has been rescheduled to Tuesday pending insurance company paperwork processing.

What all this means is I'm on a roll physically! Oh yeah, got the results of my blood tests back today too. Everything is kick-ass. That happens when you maintain a healthy life style. I know that sounds cocky and arrogant but it's true. Now if I can just put on more muscle and get my B.F. % down to the 10% - 12% range... One day at a time.

Tonight it was a short ab / pull up workout. 2 x six ab exercises plus pull ups & chin ups. Wanted to do another set or two. Have to get ready for three hour drive tomorrow so I need some sleep. I have to get up at 4:00 AM.

That's all ok. Sometimes you just do what you can. The important thing is to do something. Sure I could have just blown off my workout but that doesn't get me anywhere. I will make progress if I have to crawl damn it!

The fight goes on. Nasty freakin' pain in my hip. MRI was done Sunday and the results should be in tomorrow. The first MRI showed my spine is a-ok! The last thing I want is spinal problems. So now I just wait to see what's up with my hip. Did a kettlebell cardio routine tonight and feel great. Once I know for sure what's going on I can adjust my workouts. Maybe adding yoga and doing more stretching is the thing? We'll see when the results are in. As Jake LaMotta said to (I think) Sugar Ray Robinson in Raging Bull, "I'm not going down."

Well, the doctor called with the results of the last test. He thinks I may have a stress fracture in my hip. No heavy lifting. No leg exercises. More tests needed. Damn. Well I'll stick to body weight exercises for now. And walking. He said walking is good! I'll take whatever I can get. Possibly for the next six weeks. I'll take what I can get and to the best I can.

Ok, it's been a while since my last post! I did have a stress fracture. It's a few years old and it healed. Bad news is I definitely have arthritis in my hip. Major bummer The doc gave me the go ahead to keep working out to the fullest. If it hurts. Stop. Other than that workouts have been going great! The recommendation was no heavy lifting until the medical tests came back. In that time, I lost weight and strength. The strategy for the last week and a half has been one step back so I can move two steps forward. I've been doing full body kettlebell cardio to get my strength, endurance and all around fitness back. Seems to be working. I feel great!

I know my vegan diet is helping my recovery too. I've also cut way back on bread. Occasionally I'll have a pita or a slice of seeded muligrain with my soup or something. Just want to cut processed carbs as much as possible.

New development:Got a juicer. It's great. I like doing kale or spinach with carrots, green apples, and ginger. Toss in some hemp for protein. Oh yeeeeah! Speaking of kale, I read somewhere in the past couple of days that calorie for calorie it has more nutrition than any other food. Wish I could remember where I saw it so I could pass on the source to you. Great buzz when you juice it too.

Feel great! Maybe because I just got a green juice from the juice bar across the street. Working late tonight and taking a break. Nice green carrot, spinach, kale & ginger! Also trying to clean up a little. I was on the road all last week and it threw me off course a bit.

Speaking of juice, just got The Complete Book of Juicing. It has some great recipes in it and even a chapter called Juice As Medicine. The great thing about juicing is it that it's fast and easy. So when I get home late and need something quick I just drop some fruits and veggies in and, presto! I have a great nutrient dense recovery / pick-me-up drink.

Dealing with arthritis:Now that the warm weather is here I want to go running. Badly. But with my messed up hip that's not in the cards anymore. The solution is to do bodyweight and kettlebell (I workout in my apartment) workouts and keep the rest to a minimum to keep the heart rate up. I do this in the winter anyway. My running program was sprint a block, jog a block. I can still walk and bike and even sprint a short distance. But three to five mile runs are out.

I need to exercise and won't use arthritis as an excuse to fall out of shape. There are so many stories of people getting injured and lose it only to have a long crawl back. I won't let that happen. I'm fighting all the way.

It's been hitting the fan lately. Personally and professionally. Just doing what I can to get workouts in and stay on course. Besides, a good workout is like prozac without the side effects. Plus you stay in The Zone. Also, after juicing for the last couple of months is one of the best things I've ever done. I feel great! All fresh & 100% natural. What else do you want? I highly recommend it to everyone.

Snowboarding wipeout. Running on city pavement didn't help either. Of course the doc recommends regular exercise and movement. No prob there since I don't do sit still very well anyway. This is the first summer of no running. But I can still participate in athletic activities.

You know you're doing something right when your habits start rubbing off on others around you. Saturday, I'm hanging with a buddy and we stop into this diner for a bite and to catch the Belmont Stakes. I decide on a veggie burger. Didn't want salad. It was good too. I think they made it there. So my friend orders the same. Now this isn't the first time he's done that. A month ago a group of us were out and he also ordered the same veggie dish as me. He's been working out and trying to get back into shape.

Then this woman who hangs with the crew says she's joined a gym and participating in a training program where they also teach you about healthy eating. She was asking me training questions this weekend.

Now I have a long way to go to reach my goals and I'm not a certified personal trainer, nutritionist or anything. I know what's been working for me. Now if I could get them to go vegan and join this site. Hmmm...

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